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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26175838">Beyond the Skies of Coruscant</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/starshipslytherin/pseuds/starshipslytherin'>starshipslytherin</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Darth Vader Redemption, Darth Vader's A+ parenting, Gen, Vader raised Luke AU</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 04:13:13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>16,552</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26175838</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/starshipslytherin/pseuds/starshipslytherin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Darth Vader's teenage son is fed up with his life on Coruscant and decides to go and join this rebellion his father always speaks of.<br/>There, he meets a Jedi named Obi-Wan Kenobi, who claims he once knew Vader well. He soon has to learn that escaping his father is easier said than done, and finds himself torn between the world he entered and the one he has left behind.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Anakin Skywalker | Darth Vader &amp; Luke Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi &amp; Luke Skywalker</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>81</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Interrogations</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Also known as the "Darth Vader raised Luke but Luke decided to run away and join the Rebellion and is now Obi-Wan's problem"-AU. Enjoy! ^-^</p>
    </blockquote><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Darth Vader makes an unexpected discovery in the desert of Tatooine.</p><p>Seventeen years later, the Rebellion is unsure as to how to deal with an unexpected new recruit.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It is the first time in years that Vader sets foot on Tatooine. The twin suns burn bright and hot at this time of year, but he can no longer feel their heat.</p><p>Not far from where he landed, he can see the Lars Homestead. Memories wash over him that he would rather see buried, and so, he tries to bury them. They are no longer his. These mistakes belong to a foolish young boy who is now dead. From his ashes rose Darth Vader.</p><p>He beckons for his Stormtroopers to follow him; five loyal soldiers of the 501st whom he handpicked for this mission, and they do.</p><p>Every step that Vader takes is searing pain, tearing open his wounds once more. He pays it no mind; he will have his revenge very soon, and the pain fuels him. He has received word that Kenobi may be hiding here, and as he approaches the building, he feels it: a bright, mighty presence in the Force. It does not feel like Kenobi’s, but perhaps he should consider that he, now, serves the Dark Side of the Force, and the presence of a Jedi may burn brighter in contrast; blindingly white, almost. </p><p>Vader does not stop at the door. He reaches out in the Force and pushes it open with a bang that reverberates all throughout the dwelling. As he descends the stairs down to the courtyard followed by his troopers, the blonde woman he remembers - Beru - comes running towards them, as she undoubtedly heard them enter. She pales at the sight of him. Her lips part, but no words come out.</p><p>Vader approaches her. She remains frozen in place as he comes to a halt just before her.</p><p>“Where is he?”, rumbles the deep, metallic bass that is now his voice.</p><p>The woman shakes her head, slowly, her eyes widened. </p><p>Vader has no patience. He ignites his blade with a hiss and holds it to her throat. “Where is he?”</p><p>“Who?”, she breathes. “Who are you -”</p><p>Vader has no patience. He can sense her fear, her terror, but he senses that she is hiding something, <em> someone </em>. He grabs her upper arm. She struggles against his grip only for a moment but realises soon that it is futile.</p><p>“The one you are hiding. Where is he?”</p><p>She stares, her eyes tearful, and does not speak a word. Then, suddenly, her fear is swept away, and a calm sense of relief washes over her. Vader barely has time to make sense of it until it is nearly too late.</p><p>“<em>Owen! They’re here! Take Luke and run! </em> ”, she cries, her voice loud, shrill and desperate. “<em>Save Luke -</em>”</p><p>Vader’s crimson blade impales her, and she collapses, dead.</p><p><em> Luke. </em>It might be what Kenobi calls himself now, Vader reasons, although something within him stirs at the name as if it was deeply familiar to him.</p><p>He has no time to stand and wonder, however, and turns to his Stormtroopers. “Guard all exits. Let no one escape.”</p><p>With a collective, “Yes, sir,” they follow his order.</p><p>Vader picks up a sudden sense of horror in the Force, and catches a glimpse at its source - it is the young man that Beru called for. He is standing in one of the doorways, a hand clasped in front of his mouth. When Vader turns to him, he turns and runs back inside. <em> How foolish </em> , he muses, as he senses that Kenobi - <em> Luke? </em> - must be located in that part of the dwelling as well. The man will lead Vader right to him.</p><p>Vader makes long strides as he follows the fool inside. He keeps his crimson blade ignited.</p><p>Owen has apparently thrown some furniture into his path, chairs, open drawers, in what must be an attempt to slow him. Vader pushes all of it out of his way as if it was nothing.</p><p>He follows the bright Force signature past several open doors, and finally, as he turns a corner, it is so close that he feels if he reached out, he might be able to touch it.</p><p>Owen is awaiting him there. He stands cornered, with no path for escape, holding what looks like an old rifle in his trembling hands. There is a mixture of horror and determination painted on his face. Vader can respect that he appears willing, even if not equipped, to stand his ground, but nonetheless, he senses that the man, too, is withholding something from him, something that he strangely feels is <em> his</em>.</p><p>“Whom are you hiding from me?”, he demands. </p><p>The man’s features harden.</p><p>“I saw you murder my wife,” he speaks. His voice is shaking. “I will not let you have my nephew, too. Come any closer, and I’ll kill you. I won’t hesitate.”</p><p>“How amusing,” Vader idles. ”You really believe you could stop me?”</p><p>“I’ll die trying!”, the man cries. “One step closer, and I’ll pull the trigger!”</p><p>Vader reaches out, and the rifle flies into his hand. </p><p>The man’s eyes widen, but he stands back against the door, spreading out his arms to hold it shut. “I’m not letting you in there! I’d rather die.”</p><p>“Then die”, says Vader grimly, and his blade hisses straight through the man’s neck, cutting his head clean off.</p><p>A cry erupts from within the room. It sounds feeble and desperate, like that of an infant. Vader switches off his sabre, and steps over Owen’s body. The door is unlocked, and he lets himself in. </p><p>He steps into a compact, scarcely decorated room. There is no furniture in it besides a dresser and, in the hindmost corner, a crib. Vader feels drawn to it, and he approaches it almost automatically. Within it lies, surrounded by a few wooden toys and clutter, an infant, hardly older than a few weeks, perhaps, wrapped in a beige wool blanket. The child is wailing at the top of its small lungs as if it knew precisely what end his caretakers just met, and perhaps it does know. The infant’s presence in the Force is as strong as Vader has felt it from the moment he set foot on Tatooine; he thinks it entirely possible it might have sensed it.</p><p><em> Luke. </em>Beru had referred to the infant as Luke.</p><p>
  <em>Owen Lars’s nephew.</em>
</p><p>Vader feels it, now, the bond he himself shares with the child. It is frail, a bond that should no longer exist, or not at all, for this was the child that Anakin Skywalker had sired, that Anakin Skywalker had wanted, and <em>loved</em>.</p><p>He is Darth Vader now. Anakin Skywalker is dead. He must remain dead, at all cost, or his mistakes will become Vader’s own.</p><p>Vader’s hand reaches for his Lightsaber at his belt, through the wailing of the child, and he ignites it.</p><p>Something within him resists the idea. The child’s face softens as Vader falters, and its cries begin to subside. A calm washes over Vader, and slowly, he clips his weapon back to his belt.</p><p>The child, now, appears to observe him, its eyes blue and curious.</p><p>The son of Anakin Skywalker.</p><p>But Skywalker is dead. He is now Darth Vader, and Skywalker’s offspring is, therefore, his own.</p><p>This child, strong in the Force, is his son. If Darth Vader adopts the son of Skywalker - casts away his name, one that Skywalker and his wife picked together, and shares his own rebirth with his son he thought lost -</p><p>This child could be turned into the son of Vader.</p><p>Vader stands at the crib for a long while, motionless. He knows he should return to his men, at least notify them that all is cleared, and yet, he cannot bring himself to tear his gaze off of the boy.</p><p>Finally, he extends his hand into the crib and touches the boy’s nose tip with his gloved index finger. He is careful, a little hesitant to close the gap, but when he does, the Force pours into him and out of him. Their bond has been opened.</p><p>As he pulls away, the child reaches out and holds onto Vader’s finger with its tiny, clumsy hands, as if it was not ready to let go.</p><p>Vader will not let go, either.</p><p>He uses the Force to pick the infant up, unsure how to do such a thing using his hands (he heard terrifying things about what could happen to a baby held the wrong way, and he will not let any such harm come to his son), and carefully levitates the infant onto one of his arms. The boy is tiny against Vader’s own mighty chest, but he is not frightened. Vader observes him for a little longer. The boy shoves his tiny fist into his little mouth and closes his eyes.</p><p>Vader turns to leave the nursery, and the house, with his son soundly asleep in his arms.</p><p>His men do not question him as he returns with the infant; they follow him loyally back to his ship.</p><p>Vader grows aware that this, too, must be something Kenobi is responsible for, that Kenobi tried to take from him, but there is no anger about it in him, not for now. For lack of a better place to put the baby, he holds him in his arms for the entire duration of their journey back to Coruscant, and he sleeps peacefully all throughout it.</p><p>Surely, Vader should be worried about his master’s reaction, but for now, he is not. For now, he has found a son he thought dead, and even though he knows not how this can be possible, he knows that he will protect him with his own life, if necessary. It seems to make him just as foolish as the boy’s uncle, he muses, but for now, he cares not.</p><p>Vader gives the boy a new name. The son of Vader shall not grow up with the name Skywalker’s son was given at birth.</p><p>The son of Vader remains loyal to his father only for seventeen years, until he leaves him.</p>
<hr/><p>Keeyan was an idiot.</p><p>He had often been called an idiot in his life, not explicitly, granted, but he had been made to feel like one just enough. Right now, he finally had confirmation that his father had always been right about that fact, because how else could he have been so stupid?</p><p>It was not the fact that he had essentially walked straight into captivity, not even the fact that he had immediately played all his cards and let all possible benefits for him go to waste - no. It was more that he had not foreseen that it would end with him in a prison cell.</p><p>To be very clear, of course, he had hoped it wouldn't. Of course, he had feared it might. For maybe a second. And then, he had gone back to assuming he would be the saviour that everyone here had been waiting for. He had not assessed the situation anywhere near correctly, and now he was slouched against a wall as far away as possible from the absolutely feral looking Rebel soldier who had been appointed to guarding his cell, armed with what could be called a portable cannon rather than a blaster. </p><p>Three people had come to interrogate him so far, and he had told each of them the same thing: he was on their side, and his intel was correct, in the name of Coruscant, it was! </p><p>None of them had believed him. But honestly, could he blame them? </p><p>The frightening man guarding the cell changed his shift with an equally frightening woman (Where did the Rebellion find all these people?), and the force field was briefly disabled, allowing the new guard to set down a bowl which would hopefully not contain more cold porridge, and a glass of water.</p><p>"Thank you," said Keeyan, and retrieved his dinner. The guard looked at him in a way that made Keeyan glad the force shield was in place.</p><p>"You'll be interrogated again, and this time, you'll be telling the truth," the guard said, with enough coldness in her voice to make Keeyan shiver.</p><p>"I always have!", he snapped. </p><p>"They'll know if you don't, this time."</p><p>Keeyan huffed and returned to his favourite spot at the back of the cell. He sure hoped that they'd <em>know</em>. He hadn't been lying. He dug his spoon into his porridge rather forcefully (of course it was porridge, and it was <em>cold</em>) and scowled at the guard's massive back. If he could get into her mind - use the frustration that had been building up in him for days now, turn it into anger - but he wasn't strong enough in the Force, and what little he felt of it, the more he tried to do what he had been taught to do, it actually seemed to weaken his connection to it. </p><p>He decided the porridge was no good. Sitting alone in a prison cell was <em>boring</em>, and he had almost nothing that would help him pass the time. He ended up focused on smoothing the surface of his porridge with the back of his spoon.</p><p>"Get up," the guard barked suddenly, making Keeyan jump. He looked up from his bowl when he heard the hissing sound of the force field being disabled once again.</p><p>"Cuff yourself," the guard ordered, and threw a pair of cuffs at him in a near-hit.</p><p>"Already? But I haven't finished my -"</p><p>"Now."</p><p>Keeyan decided it would be wiser to comply. The cuffs slid down to the middle of his hands as he walked down the hallway next to the unfriendly giant, and he had to space out his thumbs a little to prevent the cuffs from falling all the way off and possibly invoking his guard's wrath.</p><p>Then, he was shoved into the already familiar interrogation room, and the guard slammed the door behind him with more ferocity than necessary, making Keeyan flinch.</p><p>"Ah, finally. You're only a <em> little </em>late, but I suppose that will hardly be your fault. Come have a seat, young one," he heard a cheerful voice say, and as he lifted his head, he saw it must have belonged to a middle-aged man with sleek, greying red hair, whom he had never seen before. He was the only one in the room, sitting at the metal table and holding a cup. "Some tea?", the man asked.</p><p>"<em>What? </em>"</p><p>"Don't be frightened, young one. I don't think myself to be one of those uncivilised brutes that they hire for guard duties."</p><p>Keeyan's eyes wandered around the room, checking for any scary technology that would prevent his possible <em>lying</em>, as he had been warned. He didn't spot any, which was somehow much more unsettling than the sight of an interrogation droid would have been. At least that might have given him an idea of what was coming for him.</p><p>The man got up and walked around the table, pulled out the uncomfortable folding chair Keeyan had come to hate, and gestured for him to sit down on it. He wore long, brown and beige robes, and had what looked like a Lightsaber clipped to his belt.</p><p>"Are you a Jedi?," Keeyan asked in awe.</p><p>"Perhaps," the man winked. Keeyan decided that it sounded like a <em> yes. </em> "Come on, sit down; you can be sure no harm will come to you."</p><p>The Jedi seemed friendly, and so Keeyan did as he asked, then slipped out of the too-large handcuffs and set them down on the table.</p><p>"Tea?," the Jedi repeated his offer. </p><p>Keeyan nodded. "Yes, please."</p><p>The Jedi lifted his hand, and a tray came levitating onto the table. It held a few mugs, a kettle, and a plate with biscuits. The Jedi poured Keeyan some tea and handed it to him. He accepted it gladly, and just the warmth of the cup in his hands made him feel a little better.</p><p>"My apologies, young one. I haven't introduced myself. I'm Obi-wan Kenobi, and I've been asked to question you."</p><p>Kenobi. The name rang with him, strangely, because so far, he had only heard it said, no, spat, in his father's deep, metallic voice, the venom of it still tangible even through the filter of its robotic nature. </p><p>"Ah, I see you've heard of me. Only the best, I presume?"</p><p>"Not exactly. But I guess if my father doesn't like you, that's a good thing."</p><p>A strange glint flickered in Kenobi's eyes for just a second, but the warm smile returned to them before Keeyan had time to make something of it. "I suppose you must be right."</p><p>"I'm Keeyan." Kenobi probably knew that, but what else could he have said?</p><p>"It's good to finally meet you."</p><p>Keeyan sipped on his tea. It was good, and its warmth seemed to unthread all the knots in his guts just a little. "What are you going to do with me?", he blurted. "The guard said I wouldn't be able to lie. Not that I've been lying -"</p><p>"Oh, don't be afraid. I'm just somewhat good at reading people, is all."</p><p>"Through the Force?"</p><p>Kenobi shrugged. "Experience."</p><p>Keeyan had never met a real Jedi, but they didn't seem to be at all what his father had warned him about. Kenobi, for one, didn't seem like a <em> pest </em>or like <em>scum </em>at all.</p><p>"I'll have to ask you a few of the same questions you've already answered, I'm afraid. Just answer truthfully, and you'll be fine. I hold no grudge against you, and your best is in my interest as well."</p><p>Keeyan nodded his head. "I'm alright with that."</p><p>"Formidable. My first question is, why did you decide to join the Rebellion?"</p><p>Keeyan sighed. He had explained this about a hundred times, even to people who weren't interrogating him. He began to tell his standard story, of how he had begun to feel the Empire was only really bringing destruction. But then he hesitated. He had felt a pull to it, an inexplicable force, a voice calling out <em> Luke, Luke, </em> but even though he had never heard that voice in his life, and for what he knew, his name wasn't Luke, it had felt so much like someone he knew, so familiar, so secure, reaching out to <em> him. </em>He knew he wasn't strong in the Force at all, but he had no idea what else it might have been. "I felt a pull, stronger than that to my father. And more - warm and reassuring. I just knew I had to follow it. It was an instinct."</p><p>Kenobi nodded pensively. "It would make sense. The Force is very strong with you."</p><p>"I'm not strong in the Force."</p><p>Kenobi gave him a peculiar look. "Did you ever receive training? And if so, by whom?"</p><p>"Mostly my father. The Emperor, once, a couple of years ago, but never again after that. It was just my father, but he didn't really seem to think it would be any use, so he didn't train me often." </p><p>Whatever had happened to the Emperor's wish to train Keeyan, he had no idea. He had only been ten years old, and he had been terrified all throughout it. The Emperor had been everything dark and cold and sick that had ever manifested in Keeyan's nightmares, a rotting figure in black robes, yellow eyes probing into his skull and feeding on his worst fears. He had tried to focus on something else, but all that he had found were his father's words, so full of disappointment and <em>mockery </em> - "Your connection to the Force could not be less existent if you were a rock". </p><p>"So you would say your training was never a priority?"</p><p>"My father thinks I'm a lost cause. That I'd never be strong with the Force. He told me that all the time. From when I was little."</p><p>"Did you receive any other form of education?"</p><p>"Yes. My education was very important to him. I had a few private teachers, and I had to study all day. Mathematics, science, history, literature, arts, the standard."</p><p>"Politics, too?"</p><p>"My father thought history would teach me enough about politics." Keeyan huffed. "I mean, he isn't - very fond of politicians."</p><p>Again, something in Kenobi's eyes flickered, but differently this time. Warmly. "Were you a good student?"</p><p>"Yeah. I like learning. Most of my teachers were pretty cool."</p><p>"What was your favourite subject?"</p><p>"Literary studies, I think. When I was younger, I used to just read all day."</p><p>"Is there anything you did outside of lessons? Hobbies, friends?"</p><p>"Flying. The faster, the better. I wanted to be a TIE pilot when I was younger, but my father was all, 'No son of mine will become a common TIE pilot', so I started doing races and everything, with some people. I never really got that close with many of them, though, we just raced, and I didn't really have time for more than that. And my father really didn't want me to hang with them because not all our races were - entirely legal."</p><p>Kenobi squinted. "Would you say your father was strict with you?"</p><p>"I mean, yeah. I had a curfew and a bedtime, and I had to ask his permission to go out. But he did let me go out, most of the time. "</p><p>"How would you describe your relationship with him?"</p><p>"Not - terrible. He can be pretty moody. Sometimes he'd be kinda distant, sometimes he'd be all in my face and nagging me all day. He's - pretty overprotective, too. Very overprotective. Sometimes more than other times." Angry, too. Darth Vader could be very explosive, but he had never <em>harmed </em>his son. Not physically, at least. No, quite the opposite. If he ever did lash out at anyone, the victim would have been whoever he had blamed for any supposed danger that Keeyan had been in. Keeyan felt a pang of guilt at the thought of what running away from him might have done. </p><p>"I think I really mean a lot to him. He never really - had anyone else. I can't believe I left, but - I had to. He controlled my whole life. And it was always the Emperor. The Emperor this, the Emperor that, suck up to the Emperor. And then he'd yell at me because opening my window could have gotten me killed, when the day before, he'd had no issue with me going out."</p><p>He wiped his face with his sleeve, and Kenobi offered him a tissue, which he gladly accepted.</p><p>"It's alright, my boy. You'll be alright here."</p><p>Keeyan nodded, blinking away more tears as they started forming.</p><p>"How - was your connection to the Emperor?," Kenobi continued, in a soft, soothing tone.</p><p>"He was always kind of looming over our heads, you know. My father hates him as much as he seems to love kissing his arse anyway - sorry."</p><p>"I'm used to some much worse language," Kenobi smiled.</p><p>"Alright. Yeah. The Emperor. I think he really wanted me to think he was some trustworthy nice man, but I've just been terrified of him all my life. He's - he's <em>scary. </em> And he enjoys it when people suffer." As far as Keeyan was concerned, the Emperor had been the source of all his problems. Whenever the Emperor had been in the picture, his life had just <em>worsened. </em>For the most part, it just made his father much worse, and everything else kind of unfolded from there.</p><p>"I see." Kenobi paused, then pushed the plate of biscuits his way. "Have another one of those. That should help."</p><p>Keeyan took one, and it did. </p><p>"We're nearly done. Hold on just a little. I want to ask you what you think of the Empire and its politics. If you need a second to answer, that's alright."</p><p>"I just think - if they're so peaceful, why are they always at war? - They lie. The Emperor is an evil man, and I've only ever seen him ruin things and lie and manipulate. That's every terrible politician in history. That's exactly what my father hates in politicians." Keeyan took another sip from his now lukewarm tea. "It's strange, you know. My father says a lot of things that make sense, but then will go out of his way to do the exact opposite of what he says he believes. He's a hypocrite."</p><p>"I see," Kenobi said slowly. "One more thing. The information you gave us, where did you get it?"</p><p>"I, um. Hacked into the system."</p><p>"What?"</p><p>"It wasn't <em>hard</em>. My father has access to some classified databases, and I guess he didn't really think I'd ever be a security issue. All I had to do was go through his datapads and copy anything that seemed like it could help."</p><p>"Why did you do that?"</p><p>"Because I wanted to join the Rebellion, and I thought if I brought them useful information, they'd let me."</p><p>"Do you have any idea <em> what </em> you gave us?"</p><p>"Not - really? I don't really know much about wars and rebellions and -"</p><p>Kenobi leaned in. "You might have turned the tides of this war, boy. Much of the intel is yet to be verified, but what we were able to verify so far - is information that many of our people have died trying to get their hands on. So you'll understand that you'll need to answer with absolute honesty - have you done everything in your power to cover up your trail?"</p><p>Keeyan swallowed. A strange, fuzzy feeling spread in his torso, and up his throat into his head. Of course, he had made sure to leave everything just as he had found it, he had worn gloves, he even had an alibi - but if the information really was that valuable, would all that have been enough? And what if the Emperor found out about it? What would that mean for him, or - for his father? Why hadn't he <em> considered </em>this?</p><p>"I really, really hope so," he said, suddenly feeling extremely tired.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you so much for reading - this AU is very dear to me, so if you enjoyed it, it would mean the world to me if you left me some love! ♥️</p><p>Also, I'm taking prompts for this AU on my <a href="http://starshiplytherin.tumblr.com">tumblr</a> now. If you want me to write a scene from Luke's childhood, just ask!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. A Friend</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A fellow rebel named Biggs helps Keeyan feel more at home at the outpost.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After the interrogation, Keeyan was taken back to his cell by Kenobi personally, but the guard was gone. He hadn't understood why there had to be one in the first place, since, force shield and all. </p><p>"You'll be fine in there?," Kenobi asked, a little sheepishly. "Such a cell is no place for a fifteen-year-old, especially one that is being tried for crimes that are not his own."</p><p>"I'll be fine," Keeyan said defiantly. "I've been in there for days, what's another night?"</p><p>Kenobi pressed his lips together. "I'll present my report to the others right away. You can hope to walk free again by tomorrow, if all goes well."</p><p>"Really?" Keeyan felt a sudden urge to hug Kenobi, but didn't act on it.</p><p>The Jedi smiled and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "I don't see any reason why not, young one. But for now, you should get some sleep."</p><p>It seemed Kenobi had been able to convince the Rebel leaders of Keeyan's honesty rather quickly, as he was released from his cell by the next morning. He was taken to a Rebel commander named Tryzel, who apologised formally to him. Commander Tryzel assured him that <em>she </em>had not been in favour of his incarceration in the first place, since after all, he was only a <em> child </em>and had never done anything wrong. There seemed to be a remarkable consensus on this among her colleagues as well. In fact, Keeyan was left to wonder how he had ended up in the cell at all, since the entire Alliance had apparently not wanted him in there.</p><p>At breakfast, he made his first friend, a dark-haired boy who appeared to be around his own age, and seemed to be trying very hard to grow a moustache.</p><p>"Are you the Vader kid?", the stranger asked in place of an introduction. "I heard some commanders or so whisper about it at the hangar."</p><p>Keeyan, his mouth full of non-porridge breakfast, looked up at him, then gulped his food down. "I have a name, and it's Keeyan," he said pointedly.</p><p>"I'm Biggs," the boy said. "Biggs Darklighter. Can I sit?"</p><p>"Sure."</p><p>"So - are you a Rebel now? Like us?"</p><p>"Well, they haven't kicked me out yet. And if I went home, the Emperor would have my head."</p><p>Keeyan took a sip from his tea. He realised his words were most likely true, and that was a strange idea to get used to. He didn't <em>want </em>to get used to it, so he pushed it far down the back of his mind, where it wouldn’t come up again so soon.</p><p>He had no home now. This was all or nothing.</p><p>All or nothing.</p><p>"I guess that does make you like the rest of us," Biggs shrugged.</p><p>Keeyan stared into his juice, giving it a little shake and watching the orange liquid ripple across its surface. He didn’t feel like drinking it. Something seemed to be blocking his throat, and he swallowed. Was everyone here so alone, or was it just him?</p><p>He blinked and looked up at Biggs. "What about you? Where are you from?"</p><p>Biggs sighed. "Tatooine. A dreary wasteland of a planet. You can imagine I wanted to get away from there."</p><p>"Isn't that in the Hutt space?"</p><p>"Yep. That's probably one of the reasons why it sucks so much."</p><p>"I've never been," Keeyan said.</p><p>When they had finished eating, Biggs’s face suddenly brightened up, and he offered to show Keeyan around the outpost. The latter saw no reason to decline; while Kenobi had asked to talk to him around noon, there was still <em>plenty </em>of time, and maybe he could get a good look at the Rebellion’s fighters -?</p><p>Hours later, he and Biggs were wholly immersed in excited chatter about wings and weaponry. As it turned out, Biggs was quite knowledgeable in that field, and he seemed glad to have found someone with a mutual interest in Keeyan. Keeyan, in turn, could not hear and see enough of the Rebel spacecraft, some of which were based on designs he had never paid eyes on before. He had Biggs explain everything he knew about them, and in turn, explained all the differences between them and the ships he had flown in as much detail as Biggs demanded.</p><p>It was just his type of pastime, and even though he had spent a lot of time tinkering at the hangars with his father (something he was carefully avoiding mentioning to Biggs), he had always kind of wished for a friend his age who shared this interest with him, too.</p><p>“You’re going to be late, young one," he suddenly heard Kenobi’s voice behind him. He jumped, and hit the back of his head on the turbine of the X-Wing that he and Biggs had been studying.</p><p>“Ow!”</p><p>He carefully stood up straight, massaging the throbbing spot. “Sorry, sir. We got a little - carried away.”</p><p>Kenobi raised an eyebrow, one corner of his mouth rising to a smile. “It doesn’t surprise me to find you here at the hangar at all," he said. “You made a new friend?”</p><p>“Uh - this is Biggs. He was showing me around the outpost. - Well, I mean, we've been looking at the fighters the entire time, actually. I haven’t seen the rest of the outpost yet. I only know it has to be <em> huge </em>.”</p><p>“One day, I’m gonna fly one of those to the heart of the Empire and shoot down every Star Destroyer," Biggs said, his hand resting on the metal of the fighter.</p><p>“That’s a wise plan," said Kenobi, looking amused.</p><p>“I’ve got to go, Biggs. I’ll see you later.”</p><p>“I’m gonna see if I can find one of the pilots and ask if they might take us for a ride. Meet me here.”</p><p>“Awesome! I will!”</p><p>Kenobi led Keeyan down one of the rather uniform hallways, and seemed to patiently listen to every word he had to say about the engines and the wings, and how he might modify the turbines to make them faster if only he was allowed to work on them.</p><p>“Do you fly a fighter, too?", he asked, a little breathless.</p><p>“Ah, I’m not an avid fan of piloting. I think it’s a job for droids.”</p><p>“That’s not true! Flying is fun! When I was little -” Keeyan interrupted himself, a heavy lump once again forming in his throat.</p><p>Keeyan's earliest memory was the first time he’d ever been in a cockpit, namely that of his father’s TIE Advanced. Of course, he had not had permission to even be near it, his father had been very clear about that, repeatedly - and before little Keeyan had even begun to figure out which of the controls did what, not that he had been able to reach, really, he had already been vindicated, the sudden presence of his father’s automated breathing announcing what he had been sure would have been his <em>certain doom</em>. How could such a grave violation of the rules possibly have ended well for him, after all?</p><p>Only it had ended well, somehow. His father had scooped him up in his enormous arms, and asked if he wanted to know more about the model. An eager nod of little Keeyan’s head had been enough to prompt his father to explain each detail of his fighter with such patience and care - Keeyan had absorbed every word like a sponge, and when the sun had already begun to set, his father had carried him back into the cockpit, sat him down on his lap, and taken him for a ride, all the way off the surface, until Coruscant had shrunk to be only a tiny ball among millions of others.</p><p><em> “This is your first taste of freedom, my son," </em> his father had said. <em> “When you are older, you will be able to explore the entire galaxy, and possibly even go beyond, where no pilot has ever gone.” </em></p><p>Of course, all his attempts to put little Keeyan to bed had been in vain that night; he had only wanted to <em>fly</em>.</p><p>Present Keeyan folded his arms as if to hold himself together. It wasn't really a story to tell anyone, he realised. “I can’t wait to show you what <em>real </em>flying is, because that can’t be done by droids,” he said, hating how it made him sound like a defiant child.</p><p>Kenobi said nothing to that, and they walked the rest of the way in silence.</p><p>He led Keeyan into a large, circular room. Several boxes and containers were stacked against the walls to the left of the doorway, and further towards the back, he could see what looked like a bunch of half-unpacked radio equipment. Several people were assembled here, all dressed in tans and greys, which made their clothes resemble a uniform even if they weren't one. Keeyan recognised Commander Tryzel among them, as well as a few of the other higher-ranking officers who had been with her that morning. They were surrounding a large table in the off centre of the room - a briefing table.</p><p>Keeyan halted, suddenly feeling very young and small, and very conscious of all the eyes on him. Some of the faces were smiling encouragingly, others curiously, while some wore neutral, blank expressions, and a few of them had a slightly sceptical frown on them. </p><p>He had seen all those faces before, only on other people, people in grey and black and sometimes white uniforms, registering the strange boy who had barged into a briefing looking for his father - “<em> How many times do I have to remind you not to interrupt when I’m busy? It seems you forget.”  </em></p><p>
  <em> “I just -” </em>
</p><p><em> “This room is no place for a child," </em> Keeyan heard his father’s voice echo in his head.</p><p>“Come on, my boy, don’t be shy," Kenobi said in his cheerful tone, and beckoned for Keeyan to step up to the briefing table.</p><p>It was weird, to be standing in a circle at a briefing table with a bunch of adults, about to go over a plan with them, whatever that would be, and to be one of them. Keeyan straightened his posture, and found himself picturing what it would be like if someone barged in right now, how he would be able to look at them with just the right amount of disdain, and confidently tell them that this briefing room was no place for them. He would be really smug about it, too.</p><p>“A more official welcome to the Alliance, young Keeyan," said a polite looking, black-haired man in purple robes.</p><p>“I - thanks," said Keeyan, feeling his face heat up as all eyes seemed to be on him again.</p><p>“This is General Porrami. He’s in charge of this outpost," Kenobi said to Keeyan. General Porrami nodded his head in confirmation.</p><p>“It’s - an honour, sir," Keeyan said.</p><p>“The honour is all mine, young man. You must have been very brave to choose what is right over what you were raised to believe.”</p><p>He shrugged, then nodded and forced out a “Thanks, sir," even though he wasn’t feeling particularly brave at all. In fact, he felt more like a coward, because from what he had been taught, brave people didn’t run, and brave people didn’t sneak around to steal information. Brave people were, well, <em> brave </em>enough to stand their ground and face their problems. He felt exactly like what his father thought all Rebels were. <em> Defectors, traitors, good-for-nothing cowards</em>.</p><p>“We’ve brought you here to inform you that you’ll be travelling to our base on Dantooine, where you will meet some of our higher-ranking leaders. They wish to enquire about some of your intel, and they hope you might be able to answer some questions about the inner workings of the Empire, given your - well, the standing of your father.”</p><p>“But - I don’t know anything," said Keeyan. “I was never allowed into meetings, or -”</p><p>“Not that sort of questions," General Porrami said with a dismissive wave of his hand. “It’s more about - things you would have picked up along the way. There’s no pressure; anything helps.”</p><p>Keeyan turned to Kenobi, who gave him an encouraging smile.</p><p>“I’ll try my best, then," he said.</p><p>“Much obliged." General Porrami bowed his head. “You leave with Master Kenobi in two standard weeks. Until then, you may begin to undergo some basic training with your fellow recruits.”</p><p>“Yes, sir.”</p><p>“If all is clear, you are dismissed.”</p><p>“It’s all clear. Thank you, sir.”</p><p>“I’ll be a little while," Kenobi said, noticing Keeyan's questioning look at him. “Why don’t you go and find your new friend?”</p><p>Keeyan nodded. “I’ll do that, sir.”</p><p>“And don’t get on the fighters without permission!", Kenobi called after him as he was already half out the door. Keeyan pretended not to have heard him, far too excited as he remembered Biggs’s promise to organise a ride. </p>
<hr/><p>It had been difficult enough to adjust to sleeping on the stone-hard stretcher in the cell, but now, strangely, Keeyan found it even harder to get used to his new bed. He had been pointed to a dorm that some of the younger members of the Rebellion shared, but the prospect of approaching any of the others about an unoccupied bunk seemed very unappealing.</p><p>"No need to shy away, they're all pretty cool," Biggs said, but nevertheless, he took it upon himself to ask around, and bribed someone to switch with him, which meant he and Keeyan could share a bunk bed. Keeyan was infinitely grateful.</p><p>Yet when he finally laid down and closed his eyes, he realised that even though his only friend’s proximity provided some comfort, it was unsettling to be alone in a room full of people, in a bed he had never slept in before, so far away from home.</p><p>Keeyan tossed and turned for what felt like hours, mentally preparing himself not to get any sleep at all, but somehow, he did wake up eventually. The dorm was now lit, too brightly for his sore eyes. He closed them again and drifted off a little, and for a second, he wondered if maybe, everything that had happened might only have been a dream. Maybe he never did leave home; maybe he was in his own bed on Coruscant.</p><p>His mind automatically played the imagery of his usual mornings before his inner eye; his white-painted ceiling, the posters of fighter blueprints on the walls, the piles of clothes on his chair in the corner of the room. How he would get up, and go to the refresher, check the time on the chrono there (it was shaped like a TIE fighter, a cherished birthday present from one of his father's captains), and down a whole glass of water.</p><p>When he opened his eyes again, only to find himself looking at nothing but the grey underside of Biggs’s bunk, it was almost startling, as if he had been suddenly ripped from his room and placed here.</p><p>As if he didn't truly belong here.</p><p>He didn't have a choice now, though; Coruscant was a memory of a place he would never be able to return to, of a father whose son he had decided not to be.</p><p>Shouldn’t it be a relief, knowing that from now on, he would never again have to fear the Emperor's presence, or to feel his dark influence behind every other corner his path took? Never again would he have his father watching over his every move, never again would he have to be on constant alert the black figure might suddenly appear behind him. Never again would his every step be watched over by people in Imperial uniforms. Somehow, the idea of that weighed down on him, strange and empty.</p><p>With a sigh, he sat up. His mouth was dry, his eyes felt swollen, and his muscles were still tired. He grabbed the glass of water on his nightstand and drank it, then got to his feet and peered into the top bunk.</p><p>"You up?", he asked Biggs, who was slowly and sleepily peeling his covers off of his body.</p><p>"Not emotionally," Biggs grumbled.</p><p>The dorms were located at the hindmost corner of the mace that the outpost was, and so Keeyan was infinitely glad for Biggs’s company and leadership, or else he would have starved before ever finding the refectory.</p><p>He and Biggs sat down with two other young Rebels that Biggs seemed to know, a Twi’lek boy with orange skin, and a girl that looked as if she could be at least part Mirialan. They both seemed to be a year or two older, but Biggs didn’t appear to mind that.</p><p>“Morning, Biggs”, the girl greeted.</p><p>“Hey there. Can we sit?”</p><p>“Sure.” She smiled, and pushed a strand of her small, dark brown curls behind her ear. “You’re new?”, she asked Keeyan as he put down his tray.</p><p>“Uh, yeah,” he said.</p><p>The boy snorted, looking amused. “I’m Torrek Yin, and that’s Onhi Madeila. Who are you?”</p><p>“Keeyan,” Keeyan said. </p><p>“Keeyan who?”</p><p>“I’m - just Keeyan.”</p><p>Onhi took a bite from her sandwich. “Are you from, like, Coruscant? You talk fancy.”</p><p>“Yeah, I am,” Keeyan said, and felt his face heat up as he realised everyone else at the table seemed to have some sort of Outer Rim accent. He hadn’t figured that that might be a problem, but what if it was? Would it make him sound stuck up, or snobbish? He really didn’t want to come off as some sort of spoiled prat who thought he was better than everyone - <em> and what if they found out about his father? </em></p><p>But Onhi just laughed it off. “Good to see it's not just us, then. I mean, isn’t it important to have all of the galaxy supporting our cause, including the core worlds?”</p><p>“I guess so,” Keeyan mumbled, feeling his cheeks heat up, and quickly stuffed his mouth with some toasted bread lest he say another thing that might send him into a spiral of overthinking.</p><p>He was very glad that Biggs took over when it came to the talking, and found that he actually felt very hungry. He picked up a second and third helping, and it still didn’t make him quite full, but he didn’t really want to make the others feel as if they had to stay seated with him until he finished.</p><p>“Alright, time for practice,” Torrek exclaimed enthusiastically as soon as Keeyan swallowed his last bite, and started to collect the trays. “We don’t want to be late.”</p><p>“Torrek usually doesn’t mind being late to anything, but he turns into a whole different person when it comes to practice,” Onhi told Keeyan while Torrek was taking the trays back to the kitchen, and winked.</p><p>“Practice? You mean - fighting and stuff?”</p><p>“Blasters,” Biggs said and let out a dramatic groan. “I’d much rather learn to fly an X-Wing. Or even a Y-Wing would be fine, even though I'm sure it'd be way more fun to be able to dogfight, and Y-Wings are just too bulky -”</p><p>“Suck it up, Darklighter, no-one cares,” sighed Torrek, passing them and grabbing one of Biggs’s arms to pull him along.</p><p>“He cares,” Biggs smirked, nodding at Keeyan, who really didn’t feel like getting involved in some sort of Blasters vs. Ships debate, although he could feel one coming.</p><p>“Nerds,” however, was the only comment Torrek made.</p><p>Blaster practice went terribly for Keeyan, and wonderfully for everyone else. Keeyan's plan to just watch the others practice was foiled by a Torrek who insisted everyone needed to know how to fire a blaster, even aspiring pilots. When Torrek realised that Keeyan was a very lost cause, he sighed and called one of his friends, despite Keeyan's pleas not to draw any more attention to him.</p><p>"Nonsense. Yooli is one of our best snipers, and they're an amazing instructor. I'm sure they'll love the challenge," Torrek shrugged.</p><p>Yooli turned out to be a short, friendly Pantoran in their twenties, and even though Keeyan discretely told them that he was a lost cause anyway and that they could just focus on instructing the others, they refused to leave his side. He felt everyone's eyes on him all throughout it and it was a nightmarish experience, to the point that he would rather be back in a room alone with Doctor Raygen, his first mathematics teacher that his father had had to fire (Vader had called it "force to resign", though, for some reason, with a weird emphasis on "force") because he made Keeyan cry every time he even thought about numbers.</p><p>Against all odds, even practice came to an end eventually, and as soon as Yooli was done assuring Keeyan that he would surely make great progress within the next few weeks’ time, all while smiling at him in an encouraging, yet somewhat pitying way, he grabbed Biggs’s sleeve.</p><p>“Hangars?”, he asked.</p><p>“Hangars,” Biggs confirmed, and they were off.</p><p>“Stars, I hate blasters,” Keeyan sighed loudly as soon as he could be very sure to be out of earshot.</p><p>“Everything’s a little difficult the first time around, don’t beat yourself up about it,” Biggs grinned. “I’ve seen worse.”</p><p>Keeyan debated whether to tell Biggs that actually, he had had regular practice sessions back on Coruscant, but decided to let it go for the moment. Just the thought of it was too much for now.</p><p>"Wait here?", Biggs asked when the hangars were in sight. "I gotta go talk to someone real quick. He said he'd maybe teach me to fly, well, <em> one day. </em>"</p><p>"Sure," Keeyan shrugged. "Good luck with that!"</p><p>"Thanks!", Biggs called, already running off.</p><p>Keeyan supposed this had to be about Captain Antilles, an older X-wing pilot Biggs seemed to idolise, and decided to take a good look around for himself until his friend returned. As fun as it was to have Biggs, he hadn't really been able to get an overview of all the ships in the hangar, since Biggs had only shown him his favourites.</p><p>“If I didn’t know any better, I would almost suspect you live here, young one,” Kenobi’s cheerful voice greeted him.</p><p>Keeyan noted that Kenobi had a Coruscanti accent as well, and had obviously not yet been shunned from the Rebellion.</p><p>“I practically do,” he joked.</p><p>Then, he noticed that Kenobi looked - ready to leave. He was standing next to what looked like a cargo ship, a bronze astromech droid by his side, and carrying a brown bag he had flung over his shoulder.</p><p>Where was he going? Was he leaving, maybe for good? Now that he had done his job here?</p><p>Keeyan hated the idea. Kenobi had been the first adult here who had been genuinely kind to him, and the first one to listen to and believe him. He might be free now, but the idea of living here without Kenobi did make him uneasy.</p><p>Kenobi seemed to somehow sense his concerns. “Don’t worry, my boy. I won’t be gone for too long, if all goes according to plan.”</p><p>That was not very comforting; “not too long” could still be too long.</p><p>“When are you leaving?”, Keeyan asked. “And can I come? I can be your pilot!”</p><p>Kenobi gave him a<em> very </em>sceptical, albeit amused look.</p><p>“Really!”, Keeyan insisted. “It’s - pretty much the only thing I’m good at, and I’m really good at it! My father taught me. I’m the fastest pilot on Coruscant!”</p><p>For a second, that strange glint returned to Kenobi's eyes. "Fast does not equal safe,” he said. “I much prefer safe piloting, and I speak from experience.”</p><p>“I can be a safe pilot,” Keeyan insisted eagerly. “I promise. I’d be the safest pilot in the galaxy. I mean, you don’t even like flying. You say it’s for droids. <em> But </em>consider this, could a boring, safe-flying droid also get you away from danger fast if needed? Because I could. I’m <em>versatile</em>. I could adjust my piloting style. Can droids do that? No, they can’t.” For good measure, Keeyan folded his arms.</p><p>“You’re quite the negotiator.” Kenobi quirked a brow. “But I can’t take you with me, I’m afraid. You have responsibilities here, don’t you?”</p><p>Keeyan grimly thought back to the failed practice sessions, and Yooli’s desperate, doomed attempts to help him hit the target. “I don’t think I’m cut out to use a blaster,” he sighed. “but maybe - if I could join you on your mission - and you’re saying it’s a short one, anyway - I’m sure maybe I’d at least learn <em>something</em>. I’ve never been on any sort of mission before.”</p><p>Kenobi started stroking his beard, and seemed to consider Keeyan’s words. “I’ll talk to General Porrami,” he said slowly. “You might just be right.”</p><p>Keeyan felt his face split into a bright smile, a wave of excitement washing over him. “Thank you so much, sir!”</p><p>“We’d have to take off soon, though. Be prepared to depart as soon as I get back. And where’s that friend of yours?”</p><p>“Oh, Biggs! He’s really into ships, too.”</p><p>Kenobi smiled a little. “I figured, from the way he talked.”</p><p>"Can he come, too?"</p><p>"Ah, one young pilot seems quite enough for me to handle right now. But don't worry, you'll see him again, and you'll be able to tell him all about your first mission."</p><p>On his way to where he guessed the dorms were, Keeyan stumbled into Biggs, who was just on his way to the hangar.</p><p>"Where are you going?", Biggs asked. "Couldn't wait for me?"</p><p>"No, I have to go get my stuff!”</p><p>“Your - stuff? Why?”</p><p>Keeyan beamed at him. “You remember that guy, Obi-wan Kenobi? He said I could come with him on a real mission and be his pilot!"</p><p>Biggs frowned sceptically. "He's just letting you be his pilot?"</p><p>"Yeah! He's great, isn't he?"</p><p>"I guess. And you're going?"</p><p>Keeyan shrugged. "Sure. That's an amazing opportunity, isn't it? I can't let that go."</p><p>"Just seems kinda strange," Biggs said. "That he's just letting you come with him even though he's probably never seen you fly."</p><p>Keeyan frowned. “Well, I’ve got experience, and I told him that. Besides, he hates flying, so he’s probably glad about my offer.”</p><p>Biggs looked away. “If you say so. It just seems strange, doesn’t it? If he wanted a pilot in the first place, he could have asked.”</p><p>“I trust him,” Keeyan insisted, trying to make his voice sound firm.</p><p>After all, his father had considered Kenobi a high priority target for years. Now that Keeyan was with Vader’s enemy, wouldn’t Vader’s worst enemies be his best friends?</p><p>However, Kenobi had also once been close to Vader, and now, Vader considered him a terrible traitor. What if Kenobi was just not a loyal person, no matter whose side he stood on? Might he be plotting to - test Keeyan, maybe, for something he had not seen in Vader?</p><p>Even though Keeyan realised that technically, Biggs was justified in his suspicions, and he should be cautious, something in him stirred, something warm and comforting and ancient. It was telling him that he could trust the Jedi with his life and more, and he decided to listen to it.</p><p>And so, he went to pack up what little he still owned. He had only brought the necessities when he had left Coruscant - some clothing, his favourite hairbrush, a few little trinkets he was attached to.</p><p>When he got back to the hangar with his bag, he saw Biggs waiting for him by Kenobi’s ship.</p><p>“You’re going,” Biggs told him, a little hesitantly. “Master Kenobi is waiting for you onboard the ship.”</p><p>Keeyan hung his head and nodded. Biggs was the first friend he’d ever made who really <em>got </em>him, and leaving him behind so soon felt a little like betrayal.</p><p>“I’ll come back,” he said. “And by then, maybe you’ll be a pilot, too. We can fly together.”</p><p>Biggs smiled a little. “I’d like that.”</p><p>Keeyan offered Biggs his hand to shake, but Biggs pulled him into a sort of half-hug instead.</p><p>“Take care, buddy.”</p><p>“You, too,” Keeyan replied.</p><p>He took one last look at Biggs, and the hangar, then boarded the ship. Kenobi was waiting in the cockpit, on the passenger’s seat. He was already wearing his seatbelt.</p><p>“Ready for takeoff when you are, my young pilot.”</p><p>Keeyan grinned brightly. “I’m ready.”</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you so much for reading - I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and if you did, leave me some love! ♥️</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. The Contact</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Keeyan, now officially a Rebel, goes on his first mission with Obi-Wan Kenobi. They are supposed to recover intel from a contact - but it seems the Empire might have been a step ahead of them.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>AKA Obi-Wan takes an overeager new recruit who is also a Skywalker on what should have been a routine mission and, well -</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em> “The Rebel Alliance has stricken our Empire right into its heart.” </em>
</p><p>
  <em> At that, the masses fell silent only for a moment, then erupted into hushed, puzzled murmurs. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> The black-hooded figure that was the Emperor, who had spoken, paused meaningfully. To his right stood the giant, dark enforcer who served him, and to his left, there was a gaping hole where a frightened, blonde teenager should be, his absence so much more pressing than his presence could have ever been. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Just as the anticipation of the audience reached its peak, just before it began to dwindle, the Emperor continued. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> “Rebels have abducted and murdered the son of Vader, second heir to the throne.” </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Neither Darth Sidious, nor his apprentice needed so say any more to that. They both stood silently, watching the reactions of their subjects explode like wildfire. Anger, confusion, indignation, all across Coruscant, all across the streets of every planet in the galaxy, every home that received the broadcast. It was enough to reverberate in the Force. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Sidious waited calmly, patiently, deviously, one corner of his mouth curled upwards, ever so slightly. Waiting - it was what he did best. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> “Worry not,” he drawled into the microphone. “Their strike will be avenged a thousandfold. The price they will pay shall be nothing short of complete oblivion.” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>Keeyan switched off the transmission, hitting the button with a little more force than necessary, and wiped his eyes on the back of his sleeve.</p><p>“I hate him,” he mumbled. “I hate him so much.”</p><p>Even when Emperor Sidious was lightyears away, he knew how to ruin his life.</p><p>And he had never seen his father standing so silently. It rubbed him the wrong way.</p><p>Kenobi looked at him sympathetically. “They won’t get to us, young one, I promise,” he said softly. “If they had the power to destroy us, they would have already done so.”</p><p>Keeyan looked away and crossed his arms. “They don’t really think I’m dead,” he said finally.</p><p>“What makes you so sure?”</p><p>Keeyan huffed. “Firstly, my father wouldn’t be so calm. He’d have gone on a murder spree by now.”</p><p>Kenobi’s eyes darkened at those words.</p><p>“Secondly, they just needed an excuse to go full-on against the Rebellion. Without needing to pass it by the Senate. I gave them one.”</p><p>At that, Obi-Wan sighed, and squeezed Keeyan’s shoulder reassuringly. “It was only a matter of time.”</p><p>Keeyan felt his throat tighten. “Maybe. But I don’t think it’s time the Alliance has.”</p><p>“The Emperor is an evil man. He plots and schemes against his enemies, deviously, and sometimes, we fall into his traps. But they are his traps. It is not your fault if he takes advantage of something you did. That’s on him.”</p><p>Kenobi smiled, and his words were reassuring. All his life, Keeyan had had to watch his every step to stay out of danger, not to cause problems, second-guessing everything he did or did not do - his father had drilled it into his mind that that was how he stayed safe in the palace. </p><p>But maybe it really wasn’t true.</p><p>Keeyan had grown up thinking of his father as the personification of strength and power, as virtually invincible. He remembered the times his father had let him sit on his massive shoulders as a child as the only times he had ever felt anything but small. His father had always seemed like someone who could handle everything fate threw at him, and far more, with ease. Of course, he had noticed the way people turned, froze and stared at his father wherever he went, in awe or maybe fear, in a way no-one would have ever reacted to Keeyan. He had believed Vader himself never had anything to fear.</p><p>But maybe, that wasn’t true. Because if it was, he wouldn’t have taught Keeyan to live in fear of the Emperor. Wouldn’t have needed to.</p><p>There would not be an Emperor.</p><p>Vader clearly knew that the biggest threat to Keeyan’s life and safety had always been the Emperor, yet he walked alive, and there had never been anything Vader would have been able to do about it.</p><p>
  <em> “No one is safe from the Emperor, my son.” </em>
</p><p>A vast, all-consuming emptiness spread throughout Keeyan’s body, cold and hollow.</p><p>“Never underestimate him,” he whispered.</p><p>Suddenly, Keeyan felt cold, and Kenobi’s worried look did not help. Then, Kenobi sighed again, and gave Keeyan a small, sad smile.</p><p>“We once did,” he said softly. “And paid the price for it.”</p><p>“What do you mean?”, Keeyan asked curiously. “The Rebellion?”</p><p>Kenobi shook his head, slowly. He was now gazing straight ahead, as if he could see beyond the walls of the ship’s living area and gangways, right into deep space. There was a look in his eyes that suggested he was no longer really present.</p><p>“It was long ago. Before the Rebellion. Before the Empire. We all underestimated him.”</p><p>“The Jedi?”</p><p>Kenobi glanced at Keeyan, then at the control panel, at no place in particular. “The Jedi were once plentiful, and served democracy and freedom. Now, there are barely any of us left, and our meagre numbers are diminishing by the day.”</p><p>Keeyan felt his guts twist. “My father hunts them down,” he mumbled. “I’m not sure it’s - it’s all the Emperor, you know.”</p><p>Kenobi paused, and rubbed his eyes. “Neither am I,” he said. “But your father, he was once - a<em> different </em> man.” There was sadness in his voice, on his face, and it seemed to be pouring out of him and into the Force, when he spoke those words. Only for a moment, until he seemed to get ahold of it.</p><p>Keeyan furrowed his brows. “You knew him?”</p><p>His father had never spoken about his past, not really, not beyond snippets and traces and shadows, and even those had always been well-guarded. It was as though his face was not the only thing Vader’s mask was meant to hide. </p><p>Kenobi’s expression softened. “Yes. I have known your father since he was a little boy.”</p><p>Somehow, that idea seemed hilarious, his father as a <em> little boy, </em> and he felt his face brighten at the idea. “How little?”, he probed. “And what was he <em> like </em>?”</p><p>All Keeyan could picture was his father in that same black suit, with the same black mask, but a metre shorter, whacking other children over the head with a stick-turned-Lightsaber.</p><p>“He was just nine years old when we first met,” Kenobi said, and suddenly, he looked very old. “All in all, a happy child. Very bright, too.”</p><p>“Did you know him well?”</p><p>“Yes,” Kenobi said. “He grew to be a very dear friend to me, and I to him.”</p><p>A dear friend.</p><p>Keeyan remembered all the times he had heard Kenobi’s name mentioned by Vader, how there was nothing but coldness and hatred in his voice when he pronounced it. No such thing as friendship.</p><p>“And then you changed sides,” Keeyan said quietly.”Why?”</p><p>Kenobi looked up at him at that, and shook his head. “That is not - well, I hardly think it matters, anyway,” he sighs. “But yes. I suppose now, I am his enemy.”</p><p>Keeyan blinked, wondering what Kenobi had to say, what had happened between them to make his father so obsessed with finding the man. “What’s - your version of the story, then?”, he probed carefully.</p><p>“There’s no time to get into it now,” Kenobi said quickly. “We’re nearly there, and the mission comes first for now."</p><p>Keeyan nodded, and followed Kenobi back into the cockpit. </p><p>Kenobi hadn’t told Keeyan where they were going, or why, precisely. All he knew was that they were supposed to meet with someone important, and receive intel, and that meeting that person would be very dangerous. Still, collecting intel seemed far more boring than the heroic rescue missions Keeyan had pictured himself on when he had decided to join the Rebellion.</p><p>“What <em>exactly </em>are we going to do down there?”, he asked Kenobi, for the fifth time. “And don’t say, 'Patience'.”</p><p>“Well, then I suppose that leaves nothing for me to say at all,” the man responded with a wink.</p><p>Keeyan folded his arms as the ship began to drop out of hyperspace. </p><p>They had entered into a small system Keeyan didn’t recognise from his studies back on Coruscant. He followed the coordinates they had received to a small, ice-covered moon near the centre of the system.</p><p>“You’re sure this is it?”</p><p>“The Rebellion can’t always afford grandeur and luxury when it comes to rendezvous points, young one.”</p><p>Keeyan flew the ship into the atmosphere of the planet and ran a scan. “It seems the atmosphere here isn’t even breathable! We have a fracture of standard gravity - which is fair because it’s tiny. And this place is a meteorological nightmare - snowstorms, avalanches, hailstorms, thunderstorms -”</p><p>“Which is what makes it such an ideal secret location,” Kenobi said. He started typing a frequency into the comm unit.</p><p>Keeyan side-eyed him. “Do we know where to land the ship? That seems like a detail that I, as the pilot, ought to know.”</p><p>“My instructions were to circle the northern hemisphere and wait for the contact to send us the coordinates. I’m keeping a comm channel open.”</p><p>Keeyan frowned as he dropped down closer to the planet’s surface. “So you know as little as I do, huh. Why didn’t you just say so?”</p><p>“I do know a<em> little </em>.”</p><p>That answer was irritatingly vague, but before Keeyan could complain any more, the comm unit lit up.</p><p>“And now we know even more,” Kenobi commented.</p><p>Keeyan followed the coordinates they had received to what looked like a little plateau ideal for a landing, but there was no other ship there.</p><p>“Shouldn’t our contact be here by now?”</p><p>“Indeed, they should.” Kenobi furrowed his brows and double-checked the readouts. “This is the precise location.”</p><p>“They might arrive late,” Keeyan suggested.</p><p>“Impossible. Part of the plan was that they’d pick the exact meeting point, and then signal us, as to minimise the time we have to be here.” He inhaled, focusing on something. “And I do sense someone is here, very close.”</p><p>“Maybe they’ll come out after we land?”, Keeyan suggested.</p><p>“Too complicated. Try scanning for life forms.”</p><p>“There’s two, but they seem to be underground,” Keeyan noted.</p><p>“Two? It should only be one,” Kenobi said. “Are you sure?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Keeyan replied, “if the scanners are indicating correctly. But then again, you were also supposed to come alone, yet here I am.” He lowered the ship down to about ten metres above the ground and began to look around. “They have to be in some sort of - cave, maybe; can you spot an entrance somewhere?”</p><p>“There’s a small gauge over there,” Kenobi pointed out. “The ship <em> might </em>fit through it if you’re careful -”</p><p>“Neat!”</p><p>Keeyan accelerated and steered the ship upwards above the gauge (“What are you doing?!”), then dove straight down, nose first (<em> “I cannot believe you!” </em>).</p><p>As it turned out, there was indeed a gigantic hollow space underneath the plateau; calling it a cave would have nearly been an understatement. Keeyan could see what had to be the contact’s ship towards the back of it, half-obscured by shadows.</p><p>He slowed down considerably to give Kenobi the relief and satisfaction of a gentle landing, which he nailed. (He had practised landings excessively on Coruscant. Landing a ship safely was the first and only thing his father had taught him for a while when he had first asked for piloting lessons.)</p><p>“That manoeuvre was highly unnecessary!”, Kenobi scolded as soon as the ship touched the ground.</p><p>“But fun,” Keeyan shrugged.</p><p>“You’re not here to have fun, young one. Now let’s change into our gear and make this quick.”</p><p>The gear was nothing short of full spacesuits, which made sense given the toxic atmosphere, and the cold. Kenobi clipped his Lightsaber to his belt, and handed Keeyan a blaster.</p><p>“I’m no good with these!”, Keeyan protested.</p><p>“Then set it to stun and take it.”</p><p>“Seems excessive, but sure.”</p><p>Kenobi told Arfour to keep the ship ready for takeoff, then made directly for the direction of the other ship. Keeyan, who had never set foot on any celestial body with such low gravity, followed him in large leaps, enjoying how high he could jump. Kenobi seemed to either not mind, or to be ignoring it.</p><p>As they approached the ship, Keeyan suddenly noticed a strange feeling growing in the pit of his stomach, and he stopped leaping.</p><p>“Something’s off,” he whispered to Kenobi.</p><p>“Oh, you’re wrong! Everything is precisely as it should be,” a crisp, female voice rang from the direction of the strange ship. A black-clad figure emerged from the shadows. She was holding someone in a chokehold before her body with one arm and had her other hand at her belt. The other person, dressed in blue and brown gear, seemed tall enough that they could have easily wrestled free of her grip, yet didn’t seem to dare move a muscle.</p><p>Kenobi ignited his Lightsaber. “Go back to the ship!”, he ordered Keeyan.</p><p>“But -”</p><p>“Oh, no, you’re not going anywhere,” the woman purred, and summoned a crimson Lightsaber to her hand, which she held to her hostage’s throat. The hostage moaned softly.</p><p>“You’re an Inquisitor!”, Keeyan gasped.</p><p>“A bright child, you are,” she taunted. “Now, stay where you are and drop your weapons.”</p><p>Keeyan obeyed immediately. Kenobi switched off his blade and held both of his arms over his head, seemingly about to drop the Lightsaber -</p><p>And then he pushed. The Inquisitor was sent flying backwards, far into the shadows, while the contact was barely affected by the blow, stumbling sideways and slumping against the side of their ship.</p><p>“Take him aboard!”, Kenobi yelled at Keeyan. “I’ll take the Inquisitor.”</p><p>Keeyan nodded, scrambling to his feet and picking up his blaster. With another giant leap, he landed by the side of the contact.</p><p>“You’ll be fine?”, he asked.</p><p>The contact huffed. “I’ll live. But my - my suit has a leak.”</p><p>“Don’t worry,” Keeyan said, trying not to worry, “I’ll take you inside our ship.”</p><p>He grabbed one of the man’s arms, flinging it over his shoulder. He was of a much heavier, broader build than Keeyan, but the low gravity made it easy to pick him up.</p><p>“You’re not going anywhere,” the Inquisitor hissed, reemerging from behind the ship and dusting off her clothes. “And even if you were - your mission will fail.”</p><p>Kenobi swung his Lightsaber around and assumed a battle stance.</p><p>“We’ll see about that,” he taunted back. “I just love defeating you so much.”</p><p>“The feeling is mutual,” she hissed.</p><p>“She’s right,” the contact breathed. “If you don’t take her out, our mission has failed.”</p><p>“But you said we’d make it,” Keeyan said, puzzled. “Master Kenobi will make a run for the ship as soon as you’re aboard; we can make it!”</p><p>“You don’t understand,” the contact said as Keeyan was about to drag him up the ramp to the ship. “She has the data tape.”</p><p>“What data tape?”</p><p>“I’m a courier, not an informant. Everything you need to know is on that tape.”</p><p>Keeyan’s eyes darted back to Kenobi, who was in a heated duel with the Inquisitor; he seemed to be doing fine, although he did not seem to have a clear advantage over her. Then, Keeyan remembered the blaster at his side; his eyes were drawn to it as if by some external power. Keeyan knew that he had never been good at shooting, and yet - it didn’t seem to matter at all as a surge of warm, comforting confidence, peace, washed over him. He knew what he had to do.</p><p>“If she kills us both, tell the droid to fly you out of here and save yourself. Tell the others what happened,” he told the contact, pulling him along inside the little on-board medbay and helping him onto the stretcher.</p><p>The man nodded weakly. Keeyan got up and left the ship, his blaster in hand, and approached the fight scene.</p><p>The Inquisitor, clearly in a rage, was cornering Kenobi against the contact’s ship. Their duel was fast, a flurry of blades, with Kenobi entirely on the defence. Both were moving so quickly, Keeyan found it difficult to aim, but that same, warm feeling was still there in his guts, and spreading slowly through his entire body. It told him that he could trust it. To let go.</p><p>And so, he did, and fired.</p><p>The duellers were almost fifty metres away, but just as the Inquisitor leapt backwards, ready to charge, she was hit by the stun shot and collapsed immediately. Kenobi seemed a little disoriented for a second, but then, his eyes found Keeyan, who was still holding up his blaster.</p><p>Before Kenobi could say anything, Keeyan was already running over to him.</p><p>“Get on the ship! What are you doing!”</p><p>“She has the data tape!”, Keeyan cried. “The one for the mission -”</p><p>Kenobi seemed to understand right away. He bent down over the Inquisitor’s lifeless form and began to search the pockets on her belt. Keeyan knelt down by his side. He had an idea to allow the guiding voice inside him to let him take over once again, and he let it. He stuck his hand in the left boot of the Inquisitor’s suit with some reluctance, and felt his fingers curl around a small, rectangular object. He knew with all certainty that it was the data tape they were looking for.</p><p>Kenobi smiled when he triumphantly held it up. “Well done. Now, we need to leave before she comes to. Take this ship; Arfour can fly mine.”</p><p>Keeyan scanned his surroundings. It only occurred to him now that there was no other ship nearby, only the contact’s. The Inquisitor must have been dropped off by someone, he figured.</p><p>Reluctantly, he protested, “But she might freeze to death here if no one comes for her. She might <em> die </em>.”</p><p>“I’m certain they will come for her,” Kenobi tried to argue.</p><p>Keeyan wasn’t so sure; wasn’t sure which of its assets the Empire valued enough to save them, especially after <em>failure. </em></p><p>“What if they don’t?”</p><p>Kenobi sighed and bowed his head a little, holding eye contact. His expression was deeply sincere. “I admire your sense of compassion,” he said, “and you are right. She may be our enemy, but right now, she might not make it without help. Still, our mission comes first, for now.”</p><p>Keeyan nodded. With one last look back at the Inquisitor, reduced to a small, slumped silhouette on the icy ground, he entered the contact’s ship.</p><p>It was small, a lot smaller than Kenobi’s, and its slender form suggested it had to be built for speed. The controls came easily to him, since they were similar to those of the ship his father had assigned him to practice flying; a silver J-type Nubian Starship, one that might have been quite a few years old, but that his father had kept in prime condition.</p><p>Keeyan missed this ship a little, he noticed as he started the engines. The ship took off smoothly, and Keeyan followed Arfour back to the surface. Indeed, he did miss his own ship as well as the races; but as they left the atmosphere, and entered hyperspace, he found himself quite content with this new life as well.</p><p>Technically speaking, he had just rescued someone, which seemed to make his first mission at least a little cooler than he had thought.</p><p>The coordinates that Kenobi had sent over made the ship drop out of hyperspace sooner than expected, and Keeyan found Kenobi’s ship already waiting for him. His scanners did not indicate anything around them; they were in deep space.</p><p>The comm unit lit up. Keeyan answered, and a holo image of Kenobi appeared.</p><p>“Our contact confirms we’ve got the correct tape, and he seems to be doing better, although he does need more advanced medical attention. We agreed to return him to his ship and send him to the base on Dantooine with his astromech.”</p><p>“Aren’t we going to Dantooine as well?”, Keeyan asked.</p><p>“Oh, no,” Kenobi said. “There’s something we have to do first.”</p><p>The two ships docked, and Kenobi and Keeyan helped the contact into the pilot’s seat. Arfour, who had come onto the ship with Kenobi, vanished and soon returned with a white and blue R2 unit from the back, the two droids beeping and chirping together animatedly. (Although the R2 unit, if Keeyan understood it correctly, seemed quite prone to heavy language.)</p><p>Then, the R2 unit turned its attention to Kenobi, in a sour, low beep.</p><p>“It’s good to see you as well, Artoo,” Kenobi replied pointedly. “Now, get on with your work. We’re on a tight schedule, unfortunately.”</p><p>Artoo beeped indignantly.</p><p>“No, I’ll see you very soon, I promise. But you have to get to work now.”</p><p>With another beep that sounded a lot like a sigh, Artoo started connecting to the ship’s controls.</p><p>“The journey to the base won’t be long,” Kenobi then told the contact. “There, you should rest. I’ll deliver a more detailed report on our battle with the Eleventh Sister in due time.”</p><p>The man could only nod, his expression blank and starry-eyed.</p><p>Kenobi then signalled Keeyan it was time to leave.</p><p>“See you soon, buddy,” Keeyan whispered and rested a hand on Artoo’s dome, who beeped joyfully in response. Then, he followed Kenobi and Arfour back onto his ship.</p><p>“What is it we’re doing now?”, he asked as soon as he got seated. “Another mission?”</p><p>Kenobi finished entering coordinates, then looked up. “What we’re about to do is the mission,” he said. “He was only supposed to deliver us some helpful intel.”</p><p>Keeyan perked up at that. “What is the actual mission, then?”</p><p>Kenobi shrugged mock-innocently. “Perhaps, it may be - a heroic rescue mission, just as you’ve been hoping.”</p><p>“<em> Really? </em>”</p><p>“Really,” Kenobi smiled. “A former spy in the ISB, who has, unfortunately, been found out. She is, despite all, an invaluable asset to the Alliance - and has grown to be a dear friend to me.”</p><p>“A<em> spy</em>? That is so cool!”</p><p>Kenobi said nothing to that.</p><p>Keeyan got settled in the living area as soon as they had jumped into hyperspace, and Kenobi joined him soon afterwards with two steaming cups of tea. Keeyan thanked him, and remained silent for a while. His thoughts kept returning to the warm feeling he had experienced that day. Its aftermath was still pulsating through his veins, as if he hadn’t used all of it and it was waiting to come out of it again. He remembered vaguely that he might have experienced a sensation like it before in his life, but it had never lasted so long.</p><p>“Master Kenobi? Can I ask you something?”</p><p>Kenobi hummed and blew on his tea. “Of course.”</p><p>“Do you - remember when I made that shot? I’m a terrible shot, usually. And finding the tape - you know, it wasn’t me doing that. Not really. I had this - comforting feeling in me, and it was - as if it called to me and told me what to do. Is that - the Force?”</p><p>It made no sense, really; the Force was supposed to feel cold, or sometimes <em>hot, </em>but never soothing and warm; it was supposed to be fuelled by anger, it was supposed to take control of you, not gently nudge you; but what else could it have been? There was no other explanation besides that it must have been something very powerful, and what could be that powerful if not the Force itself?</p><p>“It does sound like it,” Kenobi said, and took a slow sip from his tea. “The Force is strong with you.”</p><p>Keeyan averted his gaze, watching his reflection bend and ripple on the surface of his tea. “My father always told me I was no good at it,” he admitted, quietly. “And I never was. It always felt so - wrong, to me.”</p><p>“You see, young one, the Force is not a power to be bent to one’s will; it simply <em>is. </em> It surrounds us, penetrates us, and binds us. It is by the alignment of its user that we may come to call it light, or dark. I would assume your father tried to instruct you in the ways of the dark side, as the Sith practice it; corrupted by their own hate and anger. But you, you do not seem to be a hateful or angry person at all. Of course, you were never going to excel as a student of the dark side. But you are strong in the Force.”</p><p>“What is the light side, then, exactly?”, Keeyan asked curiously. "How can I tell it from the dark side?"</p><p>Kenobi nodded slowly, as if he was considering how to phrase his response.</p><p>“A Jedi,” he then said slowly, “seeks to control and understand their emotions and to find peace beyond them. Once the mind is cleared, we can hear the whispers of the Force speaking to us, guiding us, and we follow its will.”</p><p>
  <em> Whispers. </em>
</p><p>Keeyan, who had been told all his life that the Force should be a thunderstorm at his command, felt something stir in him. If Kenobi was right - if he really was strong in the Force, and he had just learnt to use it the wrong way -</p><p>He heard his father’s voice in his head then, trying to remind him he would never be powerful, but even if it was as loud as ever, he found it in him not to listen, because he could feel Kenobi was speaking the truth.</p><p>“I can hear whispers, sometimes,” he said firmly. “From all around me. They’re what lead me to join the Rebellion.”</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'm so excited to post this! I've been sitting on this chapter for maybe a month or so, really unsure of what to do with it, and I had so many very different possible directions this could have gone. I mean, this kind of builds up to a very significant arc in this plot, so I had to basically plan out tons of details before I could get it just the way I wanted it, and now it's finally out there!<br/>Anyway, I hope you liked it! Who do you think the mysterious spy is going to be? Hint, it's going to be someone we all know and love, but I'm not telling you who 🤗</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. A Plan</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Even though he is still dealing with the aftermath of his first-ever battle, Keeyan has to prepare his and Obi-Wan's next mission of rescuing an important Rebel spy from an Imperial prison facility.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Huddled up against an armrest in the sitting area, his feet wrapped in a blanket and his hands around a large mug of hot chocolate, Keeyan could have been quite content. Kenobi was silently studying whatever was on the datatape, along with a holo of an angular, tower-like building. It was funny, in a way, watching him; he would occasionally rub his beard, or furrow one brow ever so slightly. Keeyan tried to gain as much information as possible from Kenobi’s reactions alone, as he felt too drowsy to ask questions. The warmth of the blanket and the sweetness of his drink were lulling him into a half-slumber, but whenever he thought about going to bed, crimson flashes would jolt through his mind, or he would see the Eleventh Sister’s lifeless body slumped on the icy ground where he left her behind. He could feel the cold that must at that moment be seeping into her body in his own bones.</p><p>His father had trained her, and was responsible for her. It felt strange, knowing that Keeyan had come so close to his father again, with just one link in between. Part of the reason she had failed her mission was Keeyan. If his father or one of his Inquisitors found her body, Vader would never know who had helped kill her, and if she lived and reported on her failed mission, her mission that had failed because of him -</p><p>Would Vader even know? Would he even consider it a possibility that the random young Rebel who had crossed him was <em> Keeyan</em>? Would he expect Keeyan to fight at all?</p><p>It sunk in, then, the realisation that if Vader sent an Inquisitor, this mission must have been important. <em> Keeyan had defeated an Inquisitor</em>. Keeyan had foiled his father’s plan.</p><p>Would Vader even consider it a possibility that Keeyan might become a threat? Would any of what had happened get back to him at all? And if it did - <em> what if it did? </em></p><p>But even then, how could Vader ever believe it? He had never considered it a possibility that Keeyan might amount to something, asset or threat.</p><p>But Keeyan pushed that thought away.</p><p>“Are we going to get in?”, he asked Kenobi, hoping it would get his mind off things.</p><p>Kenobi looked up at him with a frown, as if he had only just noticed he was there. “Yes, yes,” he muttered, distractedly. “Well, there certainly is a lot of security in place, but with our intel, as well as the superb piloting skills you claim to have, we should be able to get in and out undetected.”</p><p>At that, Keeyan sat up and moved closer to Kenobi, in order to be able to look at the hologram. “What <em>is </em>this building? I’ve never seen it. Is that the facility where the spy is being held?”</p><p>“This is a high-security prison called Stygeon Prime, or sometimes, The Spire. And yes, we have received word that she has been transported there shortly after her arrest. I would assume they might have found out about her Force sensitivity.”</p><p>Keeyan placed his mug down on the table and cocked his head. “Is she a Jedi?”</p><p>“I think so,” Kenobi said with unexpected firmness. “Even if she does not seem to be willing to believe it sometimes.”</p><p>“What do you mean?”</p><p>Kenobi sighed, and shook his head. “You’ll have to ask her that once we break her out. And that, my young friend, will be quite a job.”</p><p>Keeyan’s eyes automatically darted back to the holo, and he began staring at it as if studying it. Of course, as he had no prior experience in preparing for breaking into a prison, it didn’t tell him much, but staring at it felt like something he was supposed to be doing.</p><p>“Do you have a plan?”, he, therefore, asked Kenobi. “Just tell me what part I’ll play, and I’ll do it.”</p><p>Kenobi rubbed his beard again (Keeyan wondered at what point he might rub it off). “I’m very tempted to just leave you on the ship and have you keep the engines running. This mission is very dangerous, and this prison is a dark place to be in. But I’m afraid I’ll need an extra pair of eyes and ears in there, and Arfour would make a decent escape pilot as well, I think.”</p><p>Keeyan folded his arms indignantly; the last thing he needed right now was to be babied.</p><p>“Look, I know I’m new to the Rebellion, but I do have some battle training, and I can find my way around creepy buildings. I’ve grown up in my father’s Sith fortress on a volcanic moon. I think I could handle a <em> prison</em>.”</p><p>“This is no ordinary prison,” Kenobi told him grimly. “Prisoners are brought there to die, and no one gets out; it is a place of despair and hopelessness.”</p><p>“So now that that’s settled,” Keeyan said, more sharply than intended, “What is the plan?”</p><p>Kenobi eyed him, then folded his arms and turned back to the holo.</p><p>“Thanks to our contact, we know exactly when the shifts change and in what order, hence, when the prison is at its most vulnerable. These timetables are changed constantly, as to prevent security breaches, so the schedule we got our hands on is valuable information. - We will enter here -”, he pointed to a small platform near the bottom of the building, “swiftly dispose of the guards, and steal their armour and identification, then wait for the shift change, which will allow us to get into the building and the control room, where the guards whose identities we will have stolen would be taking on their new post. From there, we will be able to search our target’s name in the system and easily find her cell.”</p><p>“That sounds simple,” Keeyan frowned. “There has to be a catch, right?”</p><p>“Well - the catch is that we won’t have long to make our way down to the platform. If we miss the shift change there, our plan is useless.”</p><p>“So, no pressure, then?”</p><p>Kenobi smiled. “Think of it as more of a challenge. You said you used to participate in races back on Coruscant? This is your opportunity to use all your experience in employing - well, non-traditional flying techniques - in order to get us down to that prison.”</p><p>“Can do,” Keeyan grinned, brightening up. “You’ll have to buckle up, though.”</p><p>“Yes, I’m afraid so. But the mission comes first, so anything that gets us in and out, I will have to go along with.”</p><p>Keeyan picked up his mug again, and took a large sip. “Don’t worry, I’ll do my best to spare as much of your nerves as possible.”</p><p>After the plan had been discussed, Kenobi excused himself to bed. Even though his head felt impossibly heavy and he had to fight to keep his eyelids from drooping shut, Keeyan insisted on staying behind to study the tower’s defences, which he argued he would have to familiarise himself with if he was to navigate the ship around them. In truth, he just couldn’t get the image of the Inquisitor out of his head - or of the contact - or of her duel with Kenobi -</p><p>“Get some rest, young one,” Kenobi’s voice suddenly jerked him awake. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and when he lifted his head from the table, a muscle in his neck began to throb uncomfortably.</p><p>“I must’ve fallen asleep,” he muttered. “But I wasn’t tired.”</p><p>Kenobi folded his arms sternly over his light blue dressing gown. “I’m sure of that. Now get some rest; you’ll need it. You’ll find you’ll be able to focus much better after a good night’s sleep. Come.”</p><p>Begrudgingly, as he seemed to lack the energy to protest, Keeyan complied.</p><p>He found his sleeper particularly uncomfortable that night. The mattress was too firm, the blanket kept getting tangled between his legs, the pillow was too high in some places and too flat in others, and overall, the temperature in his room was too high anyway. Whenever he was just about to drift off regardless, he would notice that his throat was too dry or that he needed a ‘fresher, or his neck would act up. He began to think he wasn’t going to get any sleep at all that night, and the pressure made him even more restless, until he finally passed out from exhaustion.</p><p>He woke up late the next morning, in a sweat and feeling as if he hadn’t slept at all, even though it was almost noon. Kenobi was already cooking up a simple lunch from nutrition packs, and smiled kindly at him when he joined him in the kitchen. </p><p>“Good morning,” he greeted cheerfully.</p><p>Keeyan gave him a tight-lipped smile as a greeting back and yawned, then immediately started to make himself some caf. He hated the stuff, normally, but he had learnt to make himself drink it when he had to.</p><p>“How long until we arrive?”</p><p>“A few hours.” Kenobi’s brow curled upwards in concern. “You’re restless, aren’t you?”</p><p>Keeyan snorted. “Well, <em> yeah</em>.”</p><p>“I understand. Let’s have some food, and perhaps, if you want, I could show you some relaxation techniques afterwards.”</p><p>“I need to study the schematics,” Keeyan protested half-heartedly.</p><p>Kenobi lightly squeezed his shoulder. “I promise you, you’ll have enough time, and you’ll be able to focus better when your mind is at ease.”</p><p>Keeyan sighed, and could only nod. “I’m just so on edge. This whole - <em> everything. </em>I mean, this is a high-stakes mission, isn’t it? This is something that my father got his Inquisitors involved in. And it’s all gonna depend on me.”</p><p>“You’re not alone in this,” Kenobi said seriously. “I’m the one responsible for this mission, and I picked you for it because I know you can do it.”</p><p>Keeyan bit his lower lip. “It feels like it, though. I have to fly the ship past all these traps. What if something goes wrong?”</p><p>“Missions go wrong all the time. I’ve had hundreds of big and small missions go wrong in my life, and the Force has always been with me. It will be with us now, too. We will get through this, I promise you.”</p><p>Keeyan inhaled deeply, the air filling up his lungs as if he’d never breathed before; it felt good.</p><p>“Alright,” he whispered, and gave Kenobi a small smile. “You’re still gonna have to show me these relaxation techniques, though, I think.”</p><p>Being a Jedi, Kenobi seemed to favour Jedi meditation methods, which turned out to be even more boring than the Sith ones Vader had tried to teach his son, and that seemed to be Vader’s very favourite hobby, for some unexplained reason, and well, his only hobby, actually.</p><p>Kenobi tried to teach Keeyan to “let go” and “let his mind come at ease” and “be empty of thought” and “experience the present”, none of which were things that Keeyan had ever done in his life at all, nor were they things he would under any circumstances believe he could be good at. It seemed his head was so full of thoughts that he might never be able to get rid of them all even if he sat for a day or a week, and the more he tried to get rid of them, the louder they would get. He found he had too many problems in both the past or the future to be able to think about the present at all. What even was the present, after all? As soon as he would grow aware of a moment, that moment would already have passed, he figured.</p><p>Kenobi advised him to mind his breathing and nothing else, but then it seemed when he did attempt to focus on his breath, he would only think more, mentally reprimanding himself to keep focus, and very loudly, too. There simply was no silence in his head, but he did his best to pretend otherwise; perhaps that would work.</p><p>When Kenobi decided they were done, he did feel minimally less stressed, though, so that was something.</p><p>Kenobi then made them both tea and sat down with Keeyan to study the schematics of the Spire together, which Keeyan appreciated. It didn’t feel like too much that way.</p><p>Kenobi pulled up all extra knowledge he could find on the building, and did his best to give Keeyan a crash course in tactics and piloting based on his own experience in the Clone Wars and as a seasoned Rebel.</p><p>“If you fly half as well as your father did when he was your age, we needn’t worry about a thing,” Kenobi eventually told him, firmly yet with a small smile.</p><p>Keeyan said nothing to that, only looked at the holos again, mentally tracing along the most important points on the building that he and Kenobi had marked. It seemed his mind had already produced an exact mental copy of the holo and stored it safely in Keeyan’s brain, despite the fact he would carry the map with him.</p><p>“So I’ll fly us in,” he finally continued. “I can do that. And then, I’ll just follow your lead.”</p><p>Kenobi nodded. “There’s nothing to worry about. I know you can do this.”</p><p>Soon, Arfour signalled the two that it was time to drop out of hyperspace, and so they returned to the cockpit. Keeyan felt himself going all queasy; his knees seemed to barely be able to carry him any more.</p><p>“Relax,” Kenobi told him. “Do not worry for now. Now, there is nothing but the mission. Focus on the mission. If you must worry, you can do so afterwards.”</p><p>The drop out of hyperspace sent a jolt through Keeyan’s stomach as it never usually did, and his eyes immediately darted to what looked like a small planet still about a parsec away, barely visible, yet it seemed weirdly obtrusive, as if he <em>had to </em>look at it.</p><p>It seemed to fit the coordinates in the navigating computer.</p><p>He glanced sideways at Kenobi, who gave him nothing but a silent, affirmative nod of his head. Keeyan inhaled deeply, sighed, and accelerated the ship.</p><p>As he drew closer, he could make out a barricade around the planet, and his breath hitched. <em> Star Destroyers. </em></p><p>No one had told them there would be Star Destroyers. Did they know they were coming?</p><p>Did his father -?</p><p>But no. Keeyan had a pretty distinct feeling his father was nowhere nearby, and yet, there was something there that was very much off.</p><p>“It’s alright,” Kenobi said calmly. “Arfour will scramble our signal, and if needed, I will do the talking. If we’re very lucky, we might even get through undetected.”</p><p>“And how do we get out?” Keeyan’s voice felt unusually hollow.</p><p>“First, we focus on getting in, young one.”</p><p>And so, Keeyan accelerated, trying to look as much like an Imperial shuttle as he could. He had flown one before, after all, and he had grown up Imperial -</p><p>Thoughts began to race in his head. What if they discovered them? Every other Stormtrooper would probably recognise him on sight - what would they do to him if they found him with a Rebel and Jedi? What would his father do to him - or to Kenobi?</p><p>“Focus,” Kenobi mumbled, and Keeyan forced his mind to stay on the ship’s controls as firmly as he could. It seemed easy, compared to focusing on his breath, he found; at least flying was actually interesting. Breathing, in his opinion, was not, even if Kenobi thought the Force was in the moment between breaths or whatnot (this made no sense anyway).</p><p>“Aim for a clear path and switch off all power. This way, if we’re lucky, they might mistake us for a piece of debris on their scanners,” Kenobi suddenly ordered.</p><p>Keeyan gave him a look. “You think that’ll work?”</p><p>“I don’t know. It might.”</p><p>“Well, that’s gonna have to be good enough, then.”</p><p>Praying not to get caught just these final moments as he had Arfour pinpoint a course through the barricade, Keeyan fired the turbines one last time and then shut them off. The ship, of course, continued drifting forward, and towards the enormous vessels the likes of which he had rarely been allowed to step foot on in his childhood. A rare pleasure, or <em>honour</em>, in his father’s words; <em> uncomfortable</em>, in his own. </p><p>Perhaps it was their presence alone that made him feel so on edge, even if he had a sense he could not shake that there had to be something else, too.</p><p>Kenobi, in the seat next to him, looked highly alert and as if he was hiding his tenseness, his eyes narrowed ever so slightly and darting from left to right and finally, up, as they were drifting right underneath one of the Star Destroyers -</p><p>Keeyan expected the comm unit to light up any second, but it did not.</p><p>It felt both like hours and seconds as their ship had passed the nose of the vessel, and they were through the barricade.</p><p>Surreal, too, and even more off than before.</p><p>“See, that was - not so hard, was it,” Kenobi said, with a smile that did not quite reach his eyes.</p><p>“That was too easy,” Keeyan muttered.</p><p>“Would you rather turn back?”</p><p>Keeyan shook his head, even though it was a lie; for now, there was only the mission, after all. “But I have a bad feeling about this.”</p><p>He waited a little longer until he could be sure to be out of range of the enemy scanners, then started up the motivator.</p><p>He could do a landing, he reminded himself; he would simply dodge the cannons where he knew them to be, hoping he had memorised all of them, maybe hide behind the sharp, peaked mountains he had seen on the map. He could do it. (He had no choice but to try.)</p><p>The atmosphere was dark and foggy, thick clouds hanging in the air like algae floating in a lake. Keeyan’s eyes were drawn to the shape of what had to be the Spire, quite in the distance, black and very much giant, and so different from what he had seen on the holo of it, even though it did look the exact same.</p><p>“So,” Kenobi sighed, “Ready?”</p><p>Keeyan nodded - another lie, and they both knew it.</p><p>“You remember the plan.”</p><p>“I do.”</p><p>Kenobi mirrored Keeyan’s nod, and sighed.</p><p>“Alright. Then I have one more thing you must know, in case something goes wrong and we are separated - you will get to the control room to find our target. This is our priority. If you lose me, do not try to find me. Look at me.”</p><p>Keeyan swallowed as he complied, Kenobi’s blue-green eyes boring into his. “I want you to understand that our target is your <em>only </em>priority. Do not look for me if we are separated; I will find you, and I can hold my own. Your objective is to get to the command centre. Do you have it marked on your map?”</p><p>His throat too dry to produce an answer, Keeyan switched on the holoprojector on his comlink to demonstrate, and the map lit up. A blue, harmless ghost of the monster that lay before them.</p><p>“Good,” Kenobi breathed out. “Keep this firmly in mind, but do not write it down - the name of our target is Barriss Offee.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So, that chapter was, well, difficult to write? I'm so glad I finally finished it!<br/>I originally wanted to make this one longer and include what is now going to be the fifth chapter, but I felt a chapter break might fit well here to make, well, kind of a cliffhanger? (sorry :3)<br/>And also, I just wanted to update. I've had the events of the next chapter planned out for so long, I just want them to be, like, one chapter, ya feel?<br/>Anyway, let me know what you thought of this one! ♥️</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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